SICA - AMRUTHA VENKATESH, LRK, SRAG, GSK

[Sachi_R]

https://youtu.be/OelbM5NhJ1g
SOUTH INDIAN CULTURAL ASSOCIATION (EST: 1959) 63rd ANNUAL ART FESTIVAL 2021
In Association with HOPE ADVERTISING PVT LTD
VIRTUAL PROGRAMS AT 6:00 PM.

Vocal by
Smt. Amrutha Venkatesh
Violin - Sri L. Ramakrishnan
Mrudangam - Sri S. J. Arjun Ganesh
Ghatam - Dr. S. Karthick
Tambura - Ms Sowmya S

I am beginning to enjoy these SICA concerts which give a real festival experience with good artiste intros and superb audio video formatting, driven by the artistes themselves!

Amrutha takes us on a tour of the best of the best in CM. These youngsters are redefining excellence, building on the work of the past masters in vocal and instrument domains.

Amma Anandadayini, Vasudevachar's Kadanakutuhalam and Muddugare are delectable treats but the two masterclasses are in Nasikaabhushani and Kharaharapriya.

The accompanists combine superbly and Amrutha's voice is perfect.

Great Carnatic music is like great kite flying (I am sure you remember).

You can get the best of the weather conditions if you have the best aerodynamic design and a great sutradhara. The first simile is to the composition. The second is to the lakshana and training. The third is to manodharma.

And I forgot. A rising star of a composer perhaps!? Amrutha's own Tillana in raga Surya!

Enjoy!

[munirao2001]

I enjoyed the concert of Vidushi Amrutha Venkatesh. Sadhana and Repertoire makes her supreme confident in presentation of manodharma. Her performative aspect reflects S.K.Sanjay Subramanian kalpana forays. 'Golden Girl'-academical brilliance of securing University firsts and golden medals transforming to state of 'Golden Vidushi' of Karnataka Samgitam, very soon.
Excellent accompaniments by Ramakrishnan, Arjun and Karthik (in admiration).
All the concerts of SICA'21 are very good. Vidwan Ramakrishna Murthy's classicism soaked concert was a master class.

[rajeshnat]

And I forgot. A rising star of a composer perhaps!? Amrutha's own Tillana in raga Surya!

Enjoy!

Wow I just heard the surya Thillana. My first encounter was with TVS and then Suryaprakash. It is a fantastic ragam , kudos to Amrutha to compose a thillana which is a haunting rAGA. Dr BMK flair is there with her training with Verma . BMK typecast is there when she brings a share of quick swara burst in laya pattern after she sings engum arunananE , very aesthetic thillana.

Amrutha Venkatesh is an extraordinary vidushi , her voice is getting more weighty slowly getting a weighty MLV like texture(her guru is also vidushi Charumathi) , more power to her compositions let her get into the league of GNB, TRS etc and few present great vaggeyakkara vidushi and vidwans of today

[rajeshnat]

Mrudangam - Sri S. J. Arjun Ganesh

Tell Mrudangam is by Ravindra Jadeja . He is one of the finest mrudangam players , just absolute superlative left right balance .

[Sachi_R]

Agreed. I heard this over hifi headphones and Arjun Ganesh simply aced it at every opportunity.

[Sachi_R]

@munirao2001 great to see your appreciation for a Malleswaram girl, sir.


I find Amrutha has amalgamated many different instrument pidis, and the best techniques of many vocalists. She has gone far beyond the typical female Carnatic singer mode both on voice culture and manodharma. Her technique also optimises breath and allows for deep lower octave enunciation as well as long, filigreed expressions. Her brigha is also shining in many places.

Good to be on the same page as you sir.

[rajeshnat]

Review from 12th Nov, 2021 The Hindu edition
https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/ ... 451696.ece

[munirao2001]

Sachi Sir and Rajeshnat Sir,
My comment in The Hindu for the review has been published. I am submitting the same for your perusal.
Amrutha Venkatesh is a maestro with gained knowledge and mastery of lakshya and lakshana. Vidushi has chosen to adopt purusha prakriti over natural stree prakriti performative aspects. Concert experiences have fortified her supreme confidence to handle all the compositions in her very high repertoire. Besides the gurus mentioned in the very good review by H.Ramakrishnan, Vidushi had the privilege of getting inspired by Genius Dr. Balamuralikrishna garu and also learnt some of his great creative compositions. Her tillana creation has this tutelage stamp of class. Vidushi has won over pandita ranjakatva and pray she gets blessed with pamara ranjakatva-a popular and mass following and support like all the other 'Stars' of Karnataka Samgita.

[hnbhagavan]

Prince Rama Verma features Amrita in Swathitirunal festival at Trivandrum. While introducing Amrita prince revealed her profiiciency in Languages.It was earlier MDR who was proficient in multiple languages and he used to compose in Telugu,Tamil and Sanskrit by writing the notation in the language of the composition.
Amrita according to him has similar proficiency in the languages.

[Sachi_R]

Thanks @munirao2001 and @hnbhagavan

[musicofmdr]

A very enjoyable concert indeed. Listening to MDR has taught me to keep one's ears open to those subtle (and, most of the times the right in his case!) ways in which a song can be sung (compared to the "tried and tested form") and I look forward to such "enrichments" from seasoned artists! And Amrutha has always provided something in every one of her concert that I have listened to.
In addition to that "rare exposition" or that "grand exploration", she has enriched this concert in few other places as well. For example, check out the "dEva dEva kalayAmi thE" - I am sure @Sachi_R would have enjoyed the "thE charaNAmbuja" rather than the oft repeated "kalayAmithE" (for a nice take on this, see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGOZx9MLoVc )! She also adds some interested laya touches here and there.

#musicofmdr
https://musicofmdr.com/

[Sachi_R]

Yes! She works hard at emphasizing and combining the words to reflect the correct meanings. Something most musicians don't work on.